


Interlude III: Enter the White Council

by elrond50



Series: The Hale Clan [12]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV), The Dresden Files - Jim Butcher
Genre: Other, The Hale Family, The White Council
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-08
Updated: 2015-11-08
Packaged: 2018-04-30 16:33:25
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,557
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5171294
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elrond50/pseuds/elrond50
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Fallout from a Pantheon's return.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Interlude III: Enter the White Council

It was hard to see how a major battle took place in the town a little over a year ago. The FBI reported it as an earthquake, but only two buildings still had scaffolding around them. The quaint downtown was lively and rebuilt for the most part. That it was a hotspot for supernatural activity would never cross the mind of a casual visitor. The marks of several new business were all over the center of town. A new bakery was coming along with a small bookstore. A new gym was opening along with a café across the street. Two design companies were coming along with an IT support firm. Nothing screamed that this place was a priority for several ‘shadow’ organizations.

She had the reports of the Battle of Beacon Hills from two of her Wardens. Meyers and Chandler’s reports were clear in what happened and how the Summer Court came to the aid of House Hale, but recent events warranted a personal visit. So much magic had been unleashed on the world a month ago, but here was a small town decorated for the Christmas season with the American Thanksgiving holiday coming soon.

Looking around though, she noticed it suddenly. Ten percent of the world’s population was touched with some sensitivity to magic. Less than half that number could do anything with it. A fraction of that number could be trained to use their gift in an active and able manner with some skill and power. Less than a thousandth of one percent of the population became White Council level powerful. But as she looked around, those touched with a sensitivity were all over the place. That warranted more attention.  

Anastasia Luccio looked around and smiled again at all the decorations even as some of the area was under construction. She loved the holidays and festivities when she had time. Scaffolding with lights and garland was not something she would had expected. The atmosphere of the town was festive and friendly. She didn’t know what to expect from a supernatural war-zone, but this was the furthest from her mind.  

Finally she spotted her lunch companion. Standing, she moved closer. “Denise Braeden?”

The serious looking woman with long dark hair frowned before nodding. “Yes. Are you Luccio?”

“Yes.” She pulled out a chair for her guest

The new arrival’s frown deepened. “I was expecting something more formidable appearing for the legendary Captain of the Wardens of the White Council.”

“I’m not how I used to look,” Luccio stated plainly. “You however look very much like a former Marshal and a mercenary; it’s your eyes, they catch everything.”

Braeden shrugged and picked up a menu. “Why did you want to meet in Beacon Hills of all places? Just so you know, my normal retainer had to convince me to come here.”

Luccio motioned for the waitress and waited for her to take the orders and leave before beginning. “You’ve had some dealing with the Hales. All my interactions have been on paper. On other words, I only know about them from reports. I trust my people, but they have been in very stressful situations with the Hales and those tend to color perspective.”

“I’ve only dealt with Derek Hale and had contact with Peter Hale.” She sipped her drink. “I notice that we are across the street from Peter’s new law firm. My main view of them is a bunch of spoiled blue bloods. Sure they had a tragedy, but many have. The Hales are loaded and live in both worlds with ease. Derek doesn’t take ‘no’ for an answer when he really wants something. I’ve heard rumblings of a North American Pack Conference being organized. And not by the Hales.”

“We’ve heard a bit of that too. What does your employer think?” probed Luccio.

Braeden laughed. “Rosa’s known them for decades. She was friends with the legendary Talia Hale. I know she wants to come back from Texas, but her family convinced her to stay through the New Year. When it comes to the Hales she has a blind spot the size of Texas. She read most of the adults as little children. Take that for what it’s worth.”

Reaching for the chips in the center of the table, Luccio picked up one. “There are some matters of urgency that require immediate attention. See this chip? For an eon the magic of earth’s realm has been as flimsy and fragile as this chip.” She snapped it with ease. “Over two years ago, when the Red Court fell, it unleashed a cataclysm of magical energy. It disrupted everything on this plane.”

Braeden nodded. “I’ve heard a few of the Paranet people talk about it. One down at Caltech likened it to how an earthquake disrupts magma and incites volcanic activity.”

“Yes! Exactly,” Luccio smiled. “Magic that had been dormant was stirred up and old spells that helped keep everything in that status quo were broken. That was part of it. But the plane went from that level of fragility to say a sturdy wooden plank; magic increased that much.”

Confused, Braeden frowned. “What are you getting at?”

“When the plane was fragile, outside actors could only interfere in the most subtle of ways. Aspects of divine beings could appear, but their power was too great to actually intervene. Beings like Mab and Titania could come here, but their very presence changed the weather around them. And they could only appear for limited time or at limited strength.”

Luccio paused and took a sip of her water. “The increase then, from wafer to strong board is nothing like what just happened on All Hallows’ Eve. Fairy rings appeared for the first time in centuries. That night, or on All Saints Day in some places, they all lit up like beacons. Magic erupted from them and the very veil between planes faded. The wooden beam is now as strong as a foundation for a modern skyscraper.”

Braeden’s mouth fell open. “What happened?”

“We don’t know!” Luccio hissed. “There was a battle at a guarded Mission in Davis south of here. Our people got there in time to help the Hales fight off the Fomorian King and his main guard. When they came to after an explosion, the Hales and Fomorians were gone. The Mission was no longer in ruins, and there was no evidence of a battle. But they detected a massive magical event here.” Luccio pointed the ground.

“Why not ask the Hales directly?” Braeden dealt with Derek enough to know he wasn’t a bullshit artist.

“Carlos Ramirez deals with them the most and he is furious that information was withheld. The Hales knew something was up and didn’t contact us. Which leads us back to Halloween night and the vast change in magic.”

Braeden finished off her drink and looked around. She spotted a dark car pull up outside the building across the street. It was clear the man getting out was a Hale.

“Looks like Michael Hale,” Luccio said as she stood up. “What also has us curious is the change in status of House Hale. Following Halloween, The Summer and Winter Courts announced that the Hales have freeholder status under the Accords. As they held a March under the aegis of the Summer Court, they now hold the rank of an allied independent Duchy.”

Braeden coughed. “Are you kidding? Marcone is only a Baron and he runs Chicago.”

Luccio dismissed that with a wave of her hand. “Marcone is a newbie and the Hales have been around for centuries. The Head of the House is a damned Guardian and those are rare. The title isn’t what really intrigues us so much as the deference that Mab and Titania are giving the Hales. A Guardianship wouldn’t warrant how they are being treated.”

They stopped and Braeden watched as Michael Hale came back out of the three-story bricked office building. “Being loaded wouldn’t matter to the Sidhe Queens and from what I’ve heard over the years they are really stuck on formality.”

“Protocol matters a great deal which is why the Accords are such a big deal.” Luccio paused as Peter Hale came out of the office followed by another man she could not place. The files the Council had focused on the actual family and a few key players, like the Council apprentice and his father, the local sheriff. The person with Peter was neither of those gentlemen. “Looks like the Ambassador is leaving.”

“Ambassador to who?” Braeden asked as the two men walked towards a restaurant down the street. “You know, Big Bads only respect Bigger Bads.”

That stopped the Warden Captain in her tracks. “After Halloween and whatever took place, the Fomor asked for peace talks. They will start sometime early next year. If the Hales have a new patron then that would be why the Courts consider them equals. Even the White Court Vampires have acknowledged the Hales as freeholders and they can’t stand werewolves for the most part.”

“Not everyone loves them,” Braeden said lowly. “Many hunters dislike them and the Calaveras of Mexico despise them. A hunter’s alliance could form if the packs do hold an open conference someplace.”

“Our investigation says they have little to stand on,” Luccio stated. “Ramirez was not happy with what he found there.” She looked around and crossed the street. “Be that as it may, the Hales have good standing with many partners. This last episode notwithstanding, they have been decent allies. We need to know exactly what happened though.” She stared at Braeden directly. “Warn off any hunter friends you might have. The Hales are now freeholders and if they sanction a conference then it would have protected status. They may even invite a few parties, like the White Council to observe. The forms _must_ be obeyed.”

“How am I supposed to find out?” Braeden frowned as they came to the edge of downtown shopping district. She looked out and saw a park and a fountain. It was dedicated to a Connor Hale at the turn of the twentieth century. “Everywhere you look around here are reminders of the Hales.”

“You may not be able to do much. Derek knows you and they may have something for you to do while Madam Flores is in Texas.” Luccio crossed into the park and shook her head. “Magic here is so strong. I wonder if technology has been impacted yet. Look to the forest behind us and tell me what you see.”

Confused at the change in subjects, Braeden did as she was asked. Even though it was early afternoon in late November, the shadows were creeping across the ground. As she peered deeper into the shadows she saw them. “Those are dew drop fairies! And was that a satyr?”

“Yes, and many other fantastic mythical creatures as well I’m sure. Areas near the fairy rings have reports of all kinds of sightings. People are beginning to believe more and more in the supernatural and that is not a good thing. The Age of Reason helped decouple superstition from power. Don’t even get me started on tattoos in the modern age!”

The former Marshal frowned again. “Can we stick to one subject at a time? Rosa is close with them, but she knows that I’m on retainer. If Derek needed some help I’m not sure I’m even in his phone contacts. Second, what is this mess about tattoos? 

Luccio looked to the sky and rolled her eyes. “Magic requires Will Power and a belief that something will work. Tattoos are rituals or used to be. The act of marking the body is a symbol of belief. Now how many people have the Egyptian ankh or Christian cross permanently embedded on their skin?  That is an act of faith in a global sense. With magic on the rise and many symbols being empowered, the Age of Reason’s restrictions have failed. The things that go bump in the night are back.”

It took a second for Braeden to process what Luccio said. “Wait, how dangerous is this?”

“We need to know exactly what happened on Halloween and we need to know how the Hales were involved.” Luccio sighed and shook her head again. “There are rules in place since the dawn of humanity on this plane. History is a discombobulated mess! The modern world is disconnected from its roots. The Zodiac appears in newspapers and it’s treated as a parlor trick. It is a celestial clock of vast age. This Age is over and with it so too is Winter’s time guarding the Outer Gates. Magic in vast measure has returned right before the transfer is to occur. Extraplaneory forces can act in this realm without intermediaries for the most part. 

“So, bad guys are coming?”

Luccio nodded and sat next to the fountain. “The scary part is; many of the nastiest things from ages past are locked up in supernatural prisons. The ones who are free can free them if they wanted to now. Everything that is happening impacts other things. It is all related and it all started here someplace.” Luccio placed her hand on Braeden’s arm. “We need to know what happened. This cannot be undone by any mortal. Merlin is long gone, but if we had some idea what happened we could search the archives for a clue on how to mitigate the disaster. The Boogeyman is back and he can free his buddies.”

“Why me?” asked the former Marshal.

“You are human and you know magic. You can go places that others can’t. They will see a mercenary and black woman. As a mortal you would be invisible to the Courts and as a black woman, underestimated by the mortals for the most part. The Hales know you work for Madam Flores. How much you share with her is up to you.” Luccio reached into her jacket and pulled out a full envelope. “For future services rendered.”

The daylight started to fade. Luccio pulled her jacket tighter. “I must go. My veiling spells grow weaker and I don’t want His Grace to know I was here. If you are discovered I believe you helped resettle a lost Hale?”

“How much do you know?”

“Not enough and if we don’t learn more fast enough then the consequences could be dire.” In an instant she vanished.

Braeden stood there in a park near the outskirts of the Preserve with an envelope full of cash and a mission she didn’t ask for. “Dammit Rosa, this is worse than you thought.”  Fairy lights danced at the edge of the woods in the twilight. The wind picked up slightly and she headed back to the center of town to get her car. She spotted a group of teenagers heading into a coffee shop. She watched and recognized one of them as the young wolf she helped rescue in México. She seemed to have adapted and that brought a small smile to her face. Braeden continued walking down the street.

The White Council was now openly interested in Beacon Hills. It was the senior members of the Council that were taking notice of the Hales directly. Braeden sent a message to Rosa. The seer said that something interesting would happen today. Somehow Braeden thought she totally under sold it.


End file.
